Do Lower Yields Mean Higher Quality? W. Blake Gray July 21, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 9 Comments One of the main statistical canards about wine is that smaller yields equal better quality.
Blind Tasting: Unreliable but Necessary W. Blake Gray June 16, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 7 Comments Blind tasting is an artificial experience, but it's essential for critics. It's the only fair way to discover unknown wines, and to judge famous wines without succumbing to reputation.
Maryland: not just for crabs anymore W. Blake Gray May 18, 2014 Columns, W. Blake Gray, Wine Spotlight 4 Comments When I visit Maryland, crabs are always on the agenda, but I never bothered to even taste a Maryland wine until last month.
The surprising connection between wine and violent crime W. Blake Gray April 21, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 10 Comments Wine consumption is strongly statistically related to violent crime, and this is good news for wine lovers everywhere.
Profitability and Elusiveness in Central Otago W. Blake Gray March 17, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 1 Comment A decade ago, New Zealand's Central Otago region seemed like the next place for a wine boom. In the 1970s, there were no wineries. There were only six in 1990, but five years ago, there were more than...
I’ll have some Roussillon, hold the Rivesaltes W. Blake Gray February 16, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 6 Comments Today I take pleasure in upending one of the most common wine story tropes: the "disappearing underappreciated wine" story. These stories play the emotions like a zither: loss, urgency to act, the...
Can America Save the Wine World? W. Blake Gray January 20, 2014 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray 7 Comments Picture a public tasting, an important one, held in Montpellier, France. People are tasting American wines. And grimacing. The wines are too sweet. Too primitive. And too funky. People want to like them,...
2013 REDUX / Darth Vader is My Lover: Revelations About Brettanomyces in Wine W. Blake Gray December 26, 2013 Columns, Features, W. Blake Gray The seminar was ground-breaking for UC Davis, which previously always called Brettanomyces in wine a "spoilage organism." This was the first time the university acknowledged that brett is an important part of some wines' terroir.
